1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed in general to data processing systems. In one aspect, the present invention relates to interrupt signaling, reception, and management in a data processing system.
2. Description of the Related Art
With conventional data processing systems, an interrupt request from an interrupt source was asserted or signaled to interrupt controller using signal transitions on one or more dedicated interrupt wires. The interrupt assertion could be indicated by the logic level of the signal, a change in state of the wire, or a rising or falling edge. Likewise, interrupt de-assertion events were also reported using the physical interrupt wire(s). In this way, an interrupt assertion or de-assertion event could be supplied across the dedicated physical wire(s) by changing a state of an interrupt signal at the interrupt source to report the interrupt event to the interrupt controller. As the number and complexity of potential interrupt sources and/or interrupt controllers increases with newer data processing systems, the complexity requirements for interrupt management increase, as does the die area and wiring required for the interrupt system to provide dedicated interrupt wire(s).